Maruti Suzuki Baleno RS, The Not So Hot Hatch When It Comes To Reality!

With the recent launch of Nexa’s hot hatch the Baleno RS, the word is out that how the vehicle is cheaper than its competitor, the Polo GT. The vehicle is being put through an insane media campaign. The advertisements and the videos seem brutal, but the verdict is that the vehicle isn’t that much pumped as it seems to be.

The Baleno RS is powered by the 1.0-litre Boosterjet engine which produces 100 Bhp’s at the wheel and 150 Nm of peak torque. The RS Variant i.e the ‘Road Sport’ variant of the Baleno was recently launched. The regular Baleno offers 83 Bhp of engine output and just 115 Nm of peak torque, thus automobile enthusiasts have gone head over heels for the thirsty three cylinder engine. The engine is suited to a 5-speed manual gearbox.

Lesser Weight- Lesser Quality:

Baleno RS Front

After the launch people blabber about the lesser 200 kg’s as compared to the Polo GT and the lesser price tag which had a difference of about 50,000. The point being that the Baleno RS being in rivalry of the Polo GT, it doesn’t really convince me that it’s better than the Polo GT. No doubt it is lighter than 200 kg’s but that doesn’t sum it up! The Baleno RS being cheaper than 50k makes it cheaper in every aspect! The ride quality of the vehicle is cheaper, the suspensions which the company says is stiffened seem to be cheaper. The interiors are the same and hence they again rank in the lesser category as compared to the Polo GT.

Same Old Everything:

Baleno RS Front three quarters

The catch being, Baleno Rs was expected to be the Road Sports model of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno which was company’s flagship model for recent times and has proved to be a great hit for the car maker. But what has happened is, that the Baleno RS is almost the same as the regular Baleno. The vehicle hasn’t even got noticeable cosmetic changes. It just comes with a rendered front and back bumpers. The front V grille is also about the same, but we had expected a bit of effort there as well! But apart from that, the vehicle looks distinctly same in every angel. Both the vehicles seem to be nothing different from each other.

The RS version of the Ciaz, which was the first RS variant offered by the car maker seems much better than this wannabe sports variant of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno. Even the edited bumpers seem to be an aftermarket product. Among the crowd, Just the car enthusiasts will notice these cosmetic upgrades, else for the masses, the Baleno RS is going to be just another Maruti Suzuki Baleno but nothing else. The carmaker has maybe sacrificed on the vehicles upgrades in order to make the launch as early as possible. There a whole lot of things, a whole lot of updates which were expected, people discussed, wrote and assumed everything possible, and then were severely put down by the Baleno RS.

Being A Maruti Product:

Baleno RS Rear three quarters

Being a product of the most renowned car makers of the country, the vehicle will no doubt receive an immense response from the general mass, but I don’t find any particular spice which will make it worth the extra price tag. The vehicle is tuned neatly, has a smoother engine but then it doesn’t satisfy the thirst of a man who is looking for the extra horses at the wheels. Satisfying the mileage efficiency for Indians, the car maker has compromised on its performance and skill set of the vehicle.

Being a Maruti product the company tried to reduce the power to 100hp to get the best possible fuel economy whereas the engine is capable of producing 125bhp with an ease. We know this from figures proven by Ford’s 1 litre EcoBoost engine that comes with same 3 pot turbocharged 1-liter motor. The 1-liter engine from Maruti feels dying early when revved hard and flimsy sound inside cabin doesn’t give any sporty feeling.

Volkswagen Polo GT

Being one of the Hot Hatches, the Baleno RS is said to proudly stand against the Volkswagen POLO GT. As we all know that the POLO GT really is a badass machine in every sense, I personally feel that there is no point in comparing these two machines. The Baleno RS is somewhat good in its own position and so is the POLO GT slaying in its own.

With all that in the box, I personally don’t find any point in comparing the Polo GT and the Baleno RS. The Polo GT belongs and comes from a renowned car maker and has maintained a great reputation for over years. The Polo GT happens to be one of the most appreciated vehicles from Volkswagen and hence there is no point putting it against the wannabe Road sports version of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno.